Fantastic Force
by Screaming Dean
Summary: Scientist, Reed Richards, takes off for outer space with his faithful robot, HERBIE to find a source of unlimited energy for a world in need until there are complications brought upon by the Wizard's sabotage at the behest of his boss. Then Reed deals with the cosmic rays that turn him into a silver-haired powerhouse!


Fantastic Five

Chapter One

!SPECIAL EFFECTS! _"THOUGHTS"_

XXX

Reed Richards was a man in his late sixties who had intensive training in martial arts and other physical activities that had helped to give him an unusually well-defined, slender physique, being six feet tall weighing a moderately muscular 180 pounds. His light brown yet greying hair that was white at the temples and wavy was at a medium length.

Reed had spent much of his post-graduate life after medical school at age 20 using his genius to make patents that had made him wealthy. This allowed him to invest money in his dream of finding free energy after working as a college professor for over a dozen years.

As he worked on his technical equipment for his upcoming launch, his sharp eyes found nothing amiss. Then he checked his computer screen.

"_Everything is as it should be. Soon I'll go into outer space and acquire that unlimited source of power I've been monitoring for months now. After that, the world's power problems will be gone,"_ Reed thought as he regarded the six feet by six feet square power generator and four 4x4 cylinders that he had placed inside of the space-worthy craft he had spent the last few years making.

At that point, his faithful robot, H.E.R.B.I.E. which meant Highly Engineered Robot Built for Interdimensional Exploration floated towards him.

"Any problems, Herbie?"

The three-foot mechanism hovered three feet off the ground as Reed regarded it. It had a light-blue colored, pear-shaped body that was round on the bottom. Attached to its neck was a rectangle-shaped head with two large yellow lights for eyes against the backdrop of a black screen.

"All is well, Reed," the robot said in a monotone, sounding as if it was speaking on the radio. Then a pair of arms and legs came out of its body as it transformed into its bipedal form which was five feet tall weighing a hundred pounds in either form.

"Good, a few more checks and we can take off," Reed answered.

Upon exiting the silver-colored spacecraft which was a little larger and thicker than the size of a school bus with large diagonally slanted wings to the end giving it a thirty-foot wingspan, Reed looked over his shoulder, nodding his head in approval. He had spent years trying to find alternate forms of energy and now it looked as if his dream was finally coming true.

XXX

"That's it. I've finished it," the scientist said as he looked upon his spaceship which he had decided to call Silverbolt.

However, despite all the brilliant calculations and careful planning, there was a fatal flaw.

"_But what do I do about the cosmic rays that stand between me and my objective? Even though I've placed shields on my spacecraft will they be enough?" _Reed speculated as he made his way to the elevator that took him down to the first floor where his main office was.

Upon exiting the elevator, Reed noticed some unwanted guests, walking through the entrance. Then he made his way to his main office.

The first floor of his mansion/skyscraper was 10,000 square feet. In addition to the first floor, there were several dozens of more floors which were approximately the same square footage as the first floor.

"Who is it, Reginald?" Reed asked his head butler who had been with him for decades since Reed had made a large fortune making money on countless, ingenious scientific patents since he had graduated college with a doctorate and the like when he was a teenager from his commlink.

Reginald Ross was a man in his fifties with a slender, wiry build that covered well-corded muscles and short-cropped, graying hair.

"It's Bentley Wittman and some men from NASA, Master Reed. Where should I direct them?"

"Direct them to my main office."

As soon as the men from NASA had arrived at Reed's main office, Reed having gotten there right before them directed them to sit down.

"Would you like anything?"

"You can dispense with the pleasantries, Richards. You know why we're here."

"That being?"

Bentley Wittman was a well-dressed man of medium height and build sporting a black goatee that regarded Reed with a harsh glare. In addition to that, the two men with him were large, well-built men standing at six and a half feet tall each who were also dressed in black suits and ties.

"We don't want you going off into space searching for limitless energy."

"And I suppose outer space is your personal property?" Reed asked, narrowing his eyes at them.

"You know what we mean! What you're doing is…"

"What I'm doing is perfectly legal and within my rights! Now if there isn't anything else, you men can leave. Good day, sirs!"

"This isn't over, Richards! Do you understand how many power companies don't want limited power resources discovered?! There's a reason why nobody else is trying to do what you're doing. And if you keep on the path you're going on, it will lead to disaster. You can count on that!"

"That sounds like a threat, Wittman," Reed countered.

"Call it what you like, but there are some powerful people who don't want anyone discovering limitless power and bringing it to earth," Bentley said.

"Really? Is the solar power I'm using along with regular power a problem?"

"Solar power is horrifically expensive making it very inefficient for the average person. So that's not a problem."

"Do these powerful people about which you're speaking have something to do with that?" Reed asked with raised eyebrows.

Bentley Wittman paused for a moment regarding his host.

"I'm not going to get into a large discussion with you about that. But here's what I'm telling you. Don't you dare go off to find other sources of energy! Good day, sir!" With that, Bentley and the two men with him did an about-face and left.

"_Hmm. I'm going to have to speed things up. What I'm doing will help the environment and the whole world in general. So I won't let anyone stop me!"_

XXX

A few days later, Reed was in the pilot's seat of his spacecraft while Herbie was in his bipedal form sitting in the copilot's seat. However, as he was about to launch one of his "employees" was calling someone while standing in the shadows.

"He's about to launch right now, Mr. Wittman."

"Have you already placed the time bomb I gave you in his ship's engine?"

"Yes, Mr. Wittman."

"Good, now quietly and calmly get out of there."

"Yes, sir."

XXX

The takeoff went off without a hitch until Reed's ship had gotten a few thousand miles away from the Earth's atmosphere where he found he couldn't control the spacecraft. Then the communications screen near the controls came to life.

**"Greetings, Richards. Having a nice flight?"**

"Wittman! What the…"

**"That's right. I told you not to go on this crusade. Now you're going to pay dearly for your actions,"** Wittman explained with a sneer.

"What are you talking about? As of now, I'm thousands of miles out of your reach," Reed answered.

**"That's what you think."**

"Structural integrity has been comprised. Structural integrity has been comprised!" Herbie announced as the spacecraft began to shake. Then it went off course straight into the cosmic ray storm Reed had tried to avoid. The scientist gasped as he saw the red rays of cosmic energy coming closer and closer through his view screen.

Upon trying to use the controls to get back on course, Reed heard the warning klaxon go off.

**"That's right. I've placed a bomb inside your spaceship. And as soon you've run into the cosmic ray field your shields will go off as well."**

"This is madness!" Reed stated as the shields vanished.

**"You're the one who was crazy to oppose the powers that be with your social justice quest to give free energy to everyone! First Nikolas Tesla met his demise now it's your turn. This will keep anyone else from trying to make the world a better place. Enjoy your death!"** With that, the communication screen went blank. As Reed felt himself being hit with cosmic rays, the ship began to shake more violently. Then it blew up.

"AAARRGGGHH!"

XXX

In an undetermined time later, Reed found himself floating in outer space with the debris of his spaceship scattered around him.

"_Was I in another dimension for a while? I could have sworn that I spent over a hundred years training in hand to hand combat, learning hundreds of fighting styles and different sciences at the same time. It was as if I was absorbing so much knowledge and skills. Wait a minute! Why am I not choking? Aren't I in a space vacuum?!"_

Despite his excitement, Reed took stock of himself. Then he willed himself forward which prompted him to fly.

"_That's right. Those cosmic rays transformed me. Well, since I trained in that alternate dimension, I might as well make my way towards earth. Did Herbie make it?"_ Reed thought to himself as he seemed to instinctively know where the earth was concerning where he was at that moment.

Upon turning around, he noticed Herbie floating towards him.

"Are you OK, Herbie?"

"I'm all right, but it will take me a long time to reach earth at my speed. Is your hair longer? It seems to have gotten silver. You're a lot bigger as well."

"That's right, Herbie. The cosmic rays changed me. It looks as if they've changed you too. At any rate, sit tight as I take stock of our situation."

Then Reed noticed the four power spheres he had put into his ship floating in space several yards away from him. These cylinders had expanded to six feet high and six feet in diameter. These containers were normally light brown, but the power residing in them had made the cylinders white-hot. However, as it was the main generator was charred and destroyed.

"_These things are full of power from those cosmic rays. That's the same energy that has empowered me,"_ Reed speculated as he regarded the heated cylinders and took hold of them. Then he noticed pieces of his spaceship that he was able to place the cylinders in. In a matter of seconds, surprising himself with his speed, Reed made a makeshift container out of the larger fragments of his spacecraft, using his newfound strength and super speed to hand weld the pieces together. At that point, he placed the cylinders, Herbie, and a few other usable tech devices inside the makeshift crate and took hold of the handle he had made and attached to it. Then he took off for earth.

"Hang on, Herbie! We're going home."

XXX

A few hours later Reed arrived near the earth. And after having powered through the earth's magnetic field, Reed flew towards his home in New York, touching down at the launch pad from which he had flown off, placing his makeshift crate on the surface.

"Huff!"

"Master Reed, are you all right?! Dear heavens!" Reginald called out as he ran towards the Launchpad and noticed the abrupt change in his employer.

"I'm all right, Reginald."

The butler gasped as he regarded the much younger and more viral Reed Richards who had turned into a six-foot two-inch, two hundred twenty-five pound, beautiful Adonis sporting long, silver-white hair that went several inches beyond his shoulders. As it was, Reed's arms had enlarged to twenty inches in circumference, being symmetrical with the rest of his muscularly well-defined body.

"Was your mission a success, Master Reed?" the butler asked upon barely recognizing his employer.

"I'm not sure exactly. At any rate, it wasn't a total loss. As it is, I have a lot of lab work and research to do on these power spheres, Herbie, and myself. I also have a whole lot of self-educating and training ahead of me. Then the world will know Professor Paragon!" Reed announced with aplomb and his fists on his hips in a heroic pose.

"And don't forget his robot sidekick, Herbie!" the robot announced, standing right next to Reed while surprising both Reed and his butler.

XXX

A few minutes later, the employee who had sabotaged Reed's voyage hid in the shadows calling his confederate.

"**What is it, Melvin?"**

"It's Reed Richards. He's made it back. And he has…"

"**What?! That couldn't be! I saw his spacecraft blow up. Have you been drinking?" **Bentley Wittman said from the other line.

"No, I haven't. See for yourself," Melvin said as he held his handphone camera in the direction of Reed Richards who was talking to his butler.

**"That's not Richards, you idiot! That's…"** Upon closer scrutiny and hearing the man's voice, Wittman realized it was indeed Reed Richards extremely changed.

"**Hmm. Find out as much as you can about Richards' new form and anything else going on over there. Wittman out."**

A few minutes later, Bently Wittman called his employer.

**"What is it, Bently?"** the voice on the line demanded.

**"Despite what I've done, Reed Richards is still alive." **Bently Wittman explained.

**"What?!"**

**"Reed Richards is still..." **Bently tried to say.

**"I heard you the first time, you idiot! Why did you fail so badly?" **

**"Instead of killing him; the cosmic rays transformed him into a silver-haired youth with muscles."**

**"I see. Keep me informed, Wittman. We shall speak more of this later."**

**"Yes, Mister Luthor," **Bently answered.

XXX

A few months later, Reed stood on the top of his building, wearing his new uniform that matched the hue of his long, flowing hair, consisting of an open midriff silver-white tunic that left his arms, shoulders, back, and much of his chest and sides bare. At the same time, he wore similarly colored gauntlet/gloves, trunks, leggings, boots, and a utility belt. Then he took to the skies, looking down and regarding the people on the ground below who looked like ants from his vantage point.

XXX

AUTHOR'S NOTES: Here's a look at Reed Richards' stats based on the classic Marvel RPG

PROFESSOR PARAGON

FIGHTING: UNEARTHLY (100) This means superhuman fighting ability backed up by intense training.

AGILITY: AMAZING (50) This means superhuman agility with the ability to dodge multiple gunfires with ease.

STRENGTH: UNEARTHLY (100) For Reed, this means the ability to lift(press) around 25,000 tons.

ENDURANCE: UNEARTHLY (100) This level of endurance is a constitution that's a match for his strength that's also beyond humanity. He doesn't tire.

REASON: AMAZING (50) This level of intelligence means genius-level with the ability to create ideas beyond the normal realm of science, being able to operate advanced or alien technology with the ability to invent and build lasting equipment.

INTUITION: AMAZING (50) This level of awareness means in tune with one's surroundings, being hard to surprise.

PSYCHE: UNEARTHLY (100) This means having a closed mind, practically uncontrollable by outside means.

HEALTH: 350

KARMA: 200

RESOURCES: AMAZING: This level of wealth is the match for a large corporation on par with a billionaire.

POPULARITY: EXCELLENT: known to mass media.

APPEARANCE: INCREDIBLE: Reed has an attractive, alluring appearance.

POWERS:

Weakness Detection: Amazing

Psi Screen: Unearthly resistance to mental attacks.

True Flight: Reed can fly at an Unearthly speed (1,500 miles per hour)

Gliding: By spreading his wings and riding thermals Reed can travel at Good(120 miles/hour) airspeed and is considered "resting" enabling him to recover as if he were

True Invulnerability: Monstrous (This means the ability to easily withstand well over hundreds of tons worth of bashing and killing attacks whether they be physical or energy) Unearthly resistance vs. Cold, Disease, Heat, Radiation, Toxins.

Sealed Systems: Reed doesn't have to breathe and can survive the vacuum of space.

Lightning Speed: Reed can move at the speed of sound(750 mph) without flying.

Superhuman Senses: Reed has heightened senses which include Enhanced Hearing, Microscopic Vision, Telescopic Vision, and X-ray Vision,

Self Immunity: Reed is immune to self-inflicted damage like hitting an indestructible surface that might injure him or charging into something or someone that was too indestructible.

Regeneration: Amazing (50)

Bump of Direction: Reed has an inward compass which allows him to intrinsically know his north, south, east, west, and what is up and down no matter what his current position.

Enhanced Mind: Reed has total memory recall and flawless logic. He also hyper invention skills and superhuman intelligence which allows him to figure things out at a faster rate.

EQUIPMENT

Reed's uniform adapts to all his defenses and abilities and cannot be easily taken from him. In addition to all this, he can quickly change in and out of his uniform at will. He also has hidden equipment, tools, and Omni-gadgets in his vestment.

TALENTS/SKILLS

Martial Arts: All, Weapons Master, Acrobatics, Tumbling, Escape Artist, Combat Sense, Scholar: Martial Arts and Fighting, Scholar: Alternative Forms of Energy, High Pain Threshold, Stealth, Tactics, Leadership, Tracking, Aerial Combat, Pilot: All vehicles, Business/Finance, Computers, Computer Programming, Communications, Ornithology, Detective/Espionage, Criminology, Electronics, Forensics, Interrogation, Military, Gadgetry, Biology, Chemistry, Biochemistry, Inventor, Kit Bashing, Mathematics, Radiology, Physics, Parapsychology, Chronology, Archeology, Aeronautics, Astronautics, Astrophysics, Meteorology, Stellar Cartography, Neurosciences, Quantum Physics, Physiology, Architecture, Instructor, Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Vehicle Design, Weapons Design, Cybernetics, Robotics, Repair/Tinker, Resist Domination, Security Systems, Psychology, First Aid, Medicine, Surgery, Astro-Navigation, Speed Reading, Lightning Calculator, Languages: A lot,

XXX

H.E.R.B.I.E.

Humanoid Experimental Robot, B-Type, Integrated Electronics

FIGHTING: EXCELLENT (20) This means regular formal training

AGILITY: EXCELLENT (20) This means intensive training in agility and accuracy

STRENGTH: EXCELLENT (20) This means being able to lift 1000 pounds

ENDURANCE: REMARKABLE (30) This means no normal rest needed

REASON REMARKABLE (30) This means the ability to perform small experiments and run complex machinery

INTUITION: EXCELLENT (20) This means in the business of noticing things with an eye for detail

PSYCHE: INCREDIBLE (40) This means a strong force of will

Health: 90

Karma: 90

Resources: Sh-0

Pop: 6

Known Powers:

Incredible Body Armor

ShapeShift: Can transform into Bipedal form and back at will

Self-Sustenance: Doesn't need to eat, sleep or breathe

Tentacles: H.E.R.B.I.E. possesses eight retractable tentacle-like probes

Communication with Cybernetics: Monstrous

Plasma Generation: Amazing Energy

True Flight: Good Speed(120 miles per hour)

Self-Repair: Incredible

Arm Reconfiguration: He can reshape his arms and can form complex shapes.

Energy Blaster: Remarkable Energy, 10 areas

Force Field Generator: Create Incredible protection around 1 area

Sonic Blaster: Remarkable

Sensors: In radar/sonar/electrical systems to detect objects, radio waves, etc.

Infravision: Remarkable

Undefined Teleportation Abilities

Talents: Various skills and abilities


End file.
